First look at Inernet Explorer 9 hardware acceleration with next-gen NVIDIA ION
Microsoft launched a platform preview of Internet Explorer 9 recently. It’s not a full browser yet, so much as a framework for a browser. But it already has one of the features I’m most loking forward to: support for hardware acceleration.
The folks at NVIDIA grabbed a pre-release Asus Eee PC 1201PN and fired up the Internet Explorer 9 demo to see how it works. The long and short of it is that even though the Eee PC 1201PN has a low power Intel Atom processor, it can handle some pretty intense web-based graphics powered by HTML5, Javascript, and Direct 2D technology thanks to the NVIDIA ION graphics processor.
The Eee PC 1201PN has a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N450 CPU and next-generation ION graphics, as well as a 12.1 inch, 1366 x 768 pixel HD display and HDMI output. For the sake of comparison, NVIDIA tested a Toshiba netbook with an Atom processor and integrated graphics. The results? Not so pretty.
Asus republish 12 inch netbook UL20AT
Asus has been offering the UL20A thin and light laptop with an Intel CULV processor in a handful of configurations since late 2009. Now it looks like Asus is giving the Ul20A a minor update with the launch of the UL20AT. Notebook Review forum member David posted the spec sheets for a number of new and existing Asus notebooks found in the latest Asus World Magazine. The UL20AT was one that caught my eye, since I happen to own a UL20A-A1.
It’s tough to spot the differences between the UL20AT and the current models. The new notebook appears to be the same size and weight and it has the same 12.1 inch, 1366 x 768 pixel display. But it appears that the update will add support for up to 4GB of DDR3 RAM. Current models use DDR2 memory.
Aside from that, it looks like the UL20AT will be available with a choice of processor and hard drive options including a 1.2GHz Intel Celeron 743 or dual core SU2300 processor, a 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Solo SU3500 chip, or a 1.3GHz Intel Core 2 Duo SU7300 processor. 250GB, 320GB, or 500GB hard drive options will be available. All models will ship with integrated GMA 4500MHD graphics.
Asus is also introducing a new UL30JT 13.3 inch thin and light with a choice of Core i5 or Core i7 chips.
C-motech introduces 7 inch Mangrove tablet with Windows Mobile 6.5.3
I’ve seen plenty of tablets and mini-laptops running Windows CE, which has the same basic core as the Windows Mobile smartphone operating system. But the Mangrove 7 is the first 7 inch tablet I can recall that’s actually running Windows Mobile, not just Windows CE.
The folks at WMExperts got a chance to check out the Mangrove 7 from C-motech at CTIA recently. The tablet has a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 512MB of ROM and 256MB or RAM. In other words, it has the same CPU as the Google Nexus One, but half the RAM.
WMExperts reports that Windows Mobile 6.5.3 looks surprisingly good on the large tablet, although the touchscreen seems to be a little finicky, and the overall build quality seems pretty cheap.The on-screen keyboard also seems smaller than it should be, at least in landscape mode.
Pegatron’s NVIDIA Tegra powered HTPC does HD video
Who says you need an x86 compatible processor to create a home theater PC? No, seriously, who? I mean, I tend to think of desktop apps like Windows Media Center SageTV, Boxee, or MythTV when I think of media centers… but three out of four of those apps will run on Linux. And you can run Linux on a system with a low power ARM-based procesor.
And Pegatron is showing off just such a system, with a next generation NVIDIA Tegra chipset which combines an ARM CPU with NVIDIA graphics to enable support for 1080p HD video playback. It can handle high definition Flash video as well.
This particular model is designed to run Windows CE or Google Android. But there’s no reason you couldn’t essentially turn it into a Boxee Boxx (minus the awkwardly shaped case) by loading up a Linux distribution and installing the Boxee Linux client.
Asus Eee PC T101MT for sale now
The Asus Eee PC T101MT is a netbook with a 10 inch touchscreen display that you can fold down over the keyboard for use in tablet mode. The display is a 10.1 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel capacitive touchscreen display with support for multitouch gestures. And the netbook runs Windows 7 Home Premium, which includes optimizations for touch input (as well as the Asus TouchGate software suite, which provides a few touch-friendly applications to get you started).
After demonstrating the latest version of the 10 inch convertible tablet at CES in January, Asus is finally getting ready to ship the T101MT in April.
Eee PC.it notes that it will be available in Italy next month for 499 Euros. And I’ve been told that it will be available in the US in early April for around $499 US — which puts the Eee PC T101MT in a pretty good position to compete with the Apple iPad, which also has a $499 price tag, but no physical keyboard or ability to run desktop apps.
The Italian version of the Eee PC T101MT has a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N450 processor, GMA 3150 graphics, 2GB of RAM, a 320GB hard drive, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth, and a 0.3MP webcam.Asus says the battery should be good for about 6 hours, and the netbook has VGA, mic, and headphone jacks as well as 3 USB ports and an SDHC card reader.
But it looks like there will also be a version with Windows 7 Starter Edition, 1GB of RAM, and a 160GB hard drive. My guess is that’s the model you’ll get for $499 in the US.
Acer Aspire 1825PT tablet 10 minute video
There’s a lot of excitement around the idea of affordable tablet PCs such as the upcoming iPad and dozens of other ARM-based tablets running Google Android or other Linux distributions. But tablets have been around for years — it’s just that most of them have fit Microsoft’s earlier vision of the tablet PC, which is a powerful laptop computer with a full sized keyboard and a touchscreen display that you can fold down over the keyboard for use in tablet mode — often with an active digitizer to enable handwriting recognition.
The Acer Aspire 1825PT tablet falls somewhere in between. It looks like a traditional Windows tablet, with a keyboard and touchscreen. And runs Windows 7. But it’s part of Acer’s budget thin and light laptop line and it features a capacitive touchscreen display that can handle multitouch input.
So what exactly do you use a tablet like the Aspire 1825PT for? It’s clearly meant for more than just surfing the web. And Acer has put together a 10 minute promotional video that gives you a good look at just what this computer can do — as well as an extended look at a bunch of rocks, for some reason.
For one thing, you can treat the Aspire 1825PT like a traditional laptop and set it on a tablet to get some work done. It’s a fully functional Windows 7 computer capable of running Office, Photoshop, and other work and productivity tools. You can also rotate the screen and hold the tablet in your hands while surfing the web, looking at images, or drawing pictures.
But more than 2/3rds of Acer’s promotional video focuses on the physical design of the computer rather than its capabilities. And I think there are two good reasons for that. First, most people already know what to expect from a Windows machine. And second, what they don’t expect is a bunch of touch-friendly applications, because truth be told, there aren’t really that many of them yet.
While there are tens of thousands of touch-friendly apps for the Apple iPad and Google Android tablets (because they were developed first for touchscreen smartphones), there isn’t the same kind of touch-focused ecosystem for Windows tablets yet. Basically, when you add a touchscreen to a Windows 7 computer you expect to be able to use all your usual Windows apps by tapping on them instead of using a mouse and keyboard — despite the fact that these apps were designed with a mouse and keyboard in mind.
And that’s a large part of the reason that tablets fitting the Microsoft model have remained niche products in recent years and why people are talking so excitedly about the iPad and similar tablets. But here’s the thing — if you’d prefer a single device that can function as a full computer and a tablet, a machine like the Acer Aspire 1825PT fits the bill and leaves you with one less gadget to carry around. I just don’t think they’ll sell in large numbers until we start to see more touch-friendly, iPhone-like apps designed to run on Windows tablets. I’m not saying we need an App Store for Windows touchscreen notebooks. We just need more apps.
MSI Wind12 U230 notebook reviewed
The MSI Wind12 U230 is one of MSI’s newest thin and light laptops with an 12.1 inch, 1366 x 768 pixel display. While MSI’s previous thin and lights have sported Intel Atom or Intel Consumer Ultra Low Voltage chips, the Wind12 U230 packs an AMD Athlon Neo X2 dual core CPU and ATI HD 3200 graphics.
TestFreaks has published one of the first reviews I’ve seen of the Wind12 U230. As expected, the dual core CPU helps with multitasking and everyday computing tasks, while the HD 3200 graphics are good enough for handling HD video playback and some basic gaming.
The computer come with Windows 7 Home Premium, and the reviewer notes that it took 91 seconds to go from a cold boot to a usable desktop, which seems pretty sluggish by today’s standards.
The MSI Wind12 U230 lasted about 4 hours when used for web browsing, which is actually better than I would have expected from a computer with a dual core AMD Neo processor. While you can easily find a netbook that will provide more than twice the run time for less money, you won’t get the same kind of CPU and graphics performance out of most netbooks.
VIA’s new platform for HD video capable netbooks
VIA is no stranger to the netbook game. But thanks to Intel’s dominance of the netbook chip market, you don’t hear much from the company these days. But that hasn’t kept VIA from building new energy efficient chips. The latest VIA paltform combines a VIA Nano CPU with a VIA VX900 graphics processor to enable HD video playback on low power netbooks.
Sascha from Netbook News got a chance to check out a test system with a 1.2GHz Nano U3100 processor and VX900 graphics chipset with HD Chromation 2.0. The chipset allows you to watch 1080p HD video out of the box. In order to achieve the same thing with an Intel Atom chipset (on Windows at least), you need a media coprocessor like the Broadcom Crystal HD video accelerator or a separate graphics card like NVIDIA’s ION platform. The VX900 chipset can handle both local HD content and 1080p HD Flash video streaming from the web.
Sascha says we should start to see systems using the new chipset in June — although that’s when they’ll show up at the Computex trade show. It might be a bit longer before we actually start to see them in stores.
Gateway’s DVD drive-equipped thin and light notebook in Canada
Gateway’s EC14D series notebook has an 11.6 inch display and Intel CULV processor — which does absolutely nothing to set it apart from a dozen similar models from Asus, Acer, Dell, HP, and Lenovo. But here’s one thing that does set it apart: This laptop has a built in DVD burner.
The Gateway EC14D07U went on sale in the US earlier this month. And now you can pick one up in Canada, although north of the border they like to call it the Gateway EC14D01h. And much to my surprise, it turns out the laptop is actually cheaper in Canada than the US. Canadians can pick one up for $579.99 CAD (about $571 US), while it sells for about $630 in the States.
The specs appear to be the same wherever you purchase the EC14D. It has a 1.3GHz Intel Pentium SU4100 dual core processor, Intel GMA 4500MHD graphics, an 11.6 inch., 1366 x 768 pixel display, 4GB of RAM, a 320G hard drive, and an 8X DVD Super-Multi drive. It sports 802.11b/g/n WiFi, a 6 cell, 5600mAh battery, HDMI output, a multitouch touchpad, and runs Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.
Asus Eee PC 1008P netbook reviewed
The Asus Eee PC 1008P Karim Rashid Edition is the most expensive 10 inch netbook you can currently buy from Asus. That’s largely because it’s super thin and sports a designer edition lid, more RAM and hard drive space than most netbooks and Windows 7 Home Premium. But is that enough to justify spending $500 for a netbook? Peter at Netbooked seems to think so. He published a detailed review of the Eee PC 1008P Karim Rashid Edition today.
First, let’s clear something up. The 1008P Karim Rashid Edition doesn’t just come with a pretty lid. It also has 2GB of RAM, 320GB hard drive, and runs Windows 7 Home Premium. Those things alone will clearly drive up the price of any netbook. The netbook is also slimmer and lighter than most. And while it has a relatively wimpy battery that’s only good for 4 hours, unlike the Asus Eee PC 1008HA, this model has a user replaceable battery, and even ships with 2 batteries in some parts of the globe — which means you get up to 8 hours of run time (after swapping out batteries).
I’m not a big fan of the plastic doors that Asus uses to cover the ports, because they’re sort of begging to be broken off over time. But it does give the netbook a streamlined look when you’re not using any of these ports.
Peter does point out that the fan is a little noisier on this netbook than many others. And the laptop can get rather warm at times. It also has just 2 USB ports instead of the usual3. But overall, he was pretty impressed.
